Iowa ‘Personhood’ Amendment (HJR 12)

HJR 12 proposed an amendment to the Iowa constitution stating that “the right to life is the paramount and most fundamental right of every person.” It defines person as “all human beings, irrespective of age, health, function, physical or mental dependency, or method of reproduction, whether in vivo or in vitro, from the beginning of their biological development, including the single-cell human zygote.”

This legislation would have given constitutional rights to fertilized eggs, embryos, and fetuses, and would have made no exception for in vitro fertilization. It also would have banned abortion, birth control pills, IUDs, and emergency contraception. In addition, it would have eliminated certain medical choices for women, including some cancer treatments and in vitro fertilization, and might have led to investigation and prosecution of women who miscarry to determine if their own actions caused the death.

STATUS

This bill died in Human Resources Committee.

People

Organizations

• The Family Leader — Lobbied